Eltek is a Norwegian power electronics company that services a number of markets and industries, and developed an onboard charge solutions business for electric vehicles.

Valeo is a specialist supplier for the automotive industry.

Statment from Eltek:

Eltek today announced that it has signed an agreement whereby it will sell its activities within chargers to electric vehicles to Valeo, a global supplier of components for the automotive industry.

“While we see potential in the automotive industry the automotive business is not in our core business. It is our opinion that this transaction is beneficial to Eltek since it allows us to focus on opportunities that are more closely related to our traditional market in the telecom industry, industrial applications and data centers. With Valeo’s experience and knowhow in the automotive industry, we believe they can offer the e-vehicle charger business much greater potential for growth,” said Morten Schøyen, chief marketing officer at Eltek.

Eltek and Valeo have co-operated within the automotive space prior to the announced transaction. Both companies believe that customers will be well served by the new arrangement. The responsibility for the 16 employees in Eltek E-Vehicles will be transferred to Valeo. A separate location has been identified close to the (more…)

The Venturi VBB program is a partnership with the Ohio State University, which has so far set two international land speed records for an electric vehicle: 303 mph (487 km/h) in 2009 and 307 mph (495 km/h) in 2010

The “Venturi Buckeye Bullet Racing” is back this on the Bonneville Salt Flats to try to beat its own world land speed record with a new streamliner, aiming for more than 600 km/h.

“Because the VBB-3 is a fantastic test bed for electric powertrains subjected to extreme conditions and environments, this new records program represents a truly strategic R&D initiative for Venturi.

The Venturi VBBs belong to a long tradition of record-breaking electric vehicles. Also known as the Venturi Jamais Contente, it pays homage to Camille Jenatzy’s electric car, the first to have broken the legendary 100 km/h barrier.”

With attempts delayed due to conditions, the team had time for a visit from their patron Prince Albert of Monaco, who unveiled the latest streamliner: the Venturi VBB-3, the world´s most powerful electric car.

After two years of development, the land speed record vehicle was supposed to run on the salt flats of Bonneville over the past few days, but due to poor weather conditions the FIA (more…)